A Season for Telling the Truth in Love
A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble
“You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” – John 8:32
Yesterday in the US, we marked Juneteenth, the day in 1865 when Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas to enforce the emancipation of enslaved Black people—more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation had been signed.1 It wasn’t the day slavery legally ended in the United States (that came with the ratification of the 13th Amendment later that year). But it was the day when freedom—already proclaimed—was finally delivered, through presence, courage, and witness.
That history matters. It matters especially now, as we watch the Trump administration and others work to erase Black history from public institutions, education systems, and digital archives. This is not just an attack on facts. It is an attack on memory, and without memory, there can be no repair.
In a Substack article,2 Robert P. Jones—a respected researcher and author of White Too Long—offered a powerful suggestion. What if the 15 days between Juneteenth and July 4th became a season of critical patriotism in the United States? A new moral “High Holy Season,” rooted in truth-telling and transformation. A time, as he puts it, of “lament and celebration, reckoning and repair, confession and dreaming.”
This is not about shame. It’s about maturity. It’s about refusing to build a future on the sand of denial. We are not betraying our country by telling the truth—we are loving it, honestly. We are refusing the myth in order to recover the possibility.
How do we live into this “season of critical patriotism”? How do we, as people of faith, show up with honesty and hope in the space between freedom proclaimed and freedom practiced?
First, we remember that truth-telling is sacred. In the Jewish High Holy Days—Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe—the community enters a collective season of reflection, confession, and repair. Not out of guilt, but out of love. Not because the people are hopeless, but because they are worthy of wholeness. Imagine what it would mean for this country to take on that kind of communal courage—not for a moment, but for a season. To remember the stories we’ve silenced. To mourn the harm we’ve caused. And to say out loud the dreams we still dare to believe.
This is a spiritual act.
To tell the truth about Juneteenth is to name that freedom delayed is justice denied.
To tell the truth about July 4th is to confess that “all men are created equal” did not mean all of us.
And to live in the tension between them is to walk the path of maturity, refusing false innocence and embracing holy responsibility.
The spiritual question before us is not just what do we believe about our country? The question is: What kind of people are we becoming?
Are we capable of grief that does not collapse us, and of hope that does not deceive us?
Are we willing to face our past—not to dwell in it, but to repair what it has broken?
This is not a call to despair. It is an invitation to depth.
As Robert P. Jones writes:
“No people can live with integrity into the future if they cannot face failures to live up to their principles in the past.”3
So in these days—between Juneteenth and July 4th—I invite you to mark this season, not with fireworks, but with fire in your heart. Not with parades, but with prayer. Not with denial, but with devotion to the truth that sets all of us free.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
What truths about this country’s history have you learned only recently?
How has your faith shaped the way you engage with national identity?
What might it look like to practice “critical patriotism” with both honesty and hope?
A Prayer for the Day
For a Season of Reckoning and Repair
Spirit of Truth, Guide us into memory that heals, into stories that restore, into grief that softens what has hardened in us. May we love our land—not for what it has been, but for what it can become when we face the truth. Give us courage to lament and to dream, to confess and to rebuild, to seek justice not as a performance, but as a practice of love. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Holding Sacred the Space Between Freedom and Fulfillment
Set aside time this week to create a ritual space—simple and intentional. Light a candle. Place a stone or an object that connects you to your lineage, your story, or this land. Sit quietly for a few moments and notice what arises in your body when you think of freedom—not as an ideal, but as a practice. What memories come? What longings stir?
Then, journal in response to this prompt:
What truth do I need to face in order to participate in repair?
After writing, take a moment to speak your reflections aloud—just to yourself, or with a trusted friend. Let your voice carry the truth, even if it trembles.
If you gather with others this week, consider anchoring your gathering with a communal reading—such as Frederick Douglass’s “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”, the Emancipation Proclamation, or Robert P. Jones’ vision of “critical patriotism.” End by inviting each person to name one act of repair they are willing to embody in the days ahead.
Freedom is not a moment. It is a movement of the soul. Let this season reawaken your part in the unfolding story.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
SOLD OUT!!! July 20-25, 2025 - The Art of Wilding: A 5-Day Expedition in Wyoming for Women Leaders. Click here to learn more in case you want to come next year!
August 11, 2025, 2pm ET - Dr. Andrew Root and I will be hosting a 6 part series on Spirituality in the Secular Age based on his research. The dates are August 11, 18, September 8, 15, and October 6, 13. Mark your calendars! More on this soon.
September 4, 4:30pm ET - I will be collaborating with the Anderson Forum for Progressive Theology to host a conversation with Thomas Jay Oord on Open and Relational theology. It’s a FREE event. Register here.
October 15-18, 2025 - Converging 2025: Sing Truth Conference (all musicians invited!) at Northwest Christian Church in Columbus, OH. Register here!
I drafted a Strategic Framework for Congregations as we move into the coming years of increased authoritarianism around the world. If interested, you can download it here.
If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.
https://rac.org/blog/creating-new-days-awe-looking-toward-season-critical-patriotism-between-juneteenth-and
Thank you, with all my heart! A "must"!!! Will post of FB tomorrow (Sat.) Have been away.